Parking in the Village is still a problem

RANCHO SANTA FE — Parking in the Village, or the lack of it, continues to be an issue with the Association.

At its June 7 meeting, Associate Planner Chris Livoni provided an update on how well the CHP crackdown on people who overstay the timed parking spaces is working.

It apparently is providing a little relief in the turnover of the 471 parking spaces in the Village, he said.

“Staff recommends that the board continue to authorize the CHP, through the Association’s current Agreement with the CHP for Overtime Traffic Enforcement, to enforce the timed parking regulations in addition to their ongoing traffic enforcement duties,” Livoni said.

Last winter, when a parking survey was taken in the Village, it was determined that many of the parking shortages were caused by people who parked all day in timed zones. The survey was taken at various times of day in the core of the Village and on the perimeter from the intersection of Paseo Delicias and El Tordo on the east, to La Garcia and Linea Del Cielo on the west. The northern and southern boundaries of the survey were the intersection of Avenida de Acacias and La Granada and the intersection of Via de Santa Fe and La Granada. It showed the parking total was between 75 and 90 percent utilized depending on the area and the time of day.

The Association decided to have the CHP use some of its contracted overtime to issue parking tickets to violators.

In May, staff conducted a similar survey at the same times of day.

“Even though some street segments exceeded the 90 percent parking demand threshold, there does not appear to be an overall parking shortage in the Village as a whole,” Livoni said. “Additionally, parking levels in the Village core are showing as being down as compared to the previously conducted survey.”

But overall, the parking total in the core of the Village, which was 75 to 90 percent, has dropped to a range of 68 percent to 87 percent since the enforcement began. In the perimeter area, numbers that were between 43 and 60 percent have risen from 50 to 70 percent.

“We believe that these changes can be attributed at least in part, to the introduction of the CHP enforcement of the timed parking spaces, which moves long-term Village patrons to the perimeter parking areas,” Livoni said.

Not everyone is happy with the current parking plan and Jack Queen, board president, joked that he has been going around checking the hands of some business owners for green paint residue.

“Some businesses that need timed parking will have to go through the Association and we will go to the county,” Queen said.